Manicuring devices



March 13, 1956 SOLDAN 2,737 ,95 9 H MANICURING DEVICES Filed Sept. 10, 1951 F, INVENTOR. 7 Leu/IJE. So/dan ATTOKNGV United States Patent MANICURING DEVICES Lewis E. Soldan, San Diego, Calif.

Application September 10, 1951, Serial No. 245,935

12 Claims. (Cl. 132-79) This invention relates to improvements in manicuring devices. More particularly, this invention relates to improvements in manicuring devices that facilitate the removal of fingernail polish from the fingers of the user.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved apparatus for removing fingernail polish from the fingers of the users.

Users of fingernail polish frequently note that the polish on one or more of the nails will chip and crack away while the fingernail polish on the rest of the fingers is intact. In such instances it is desirable to remove the chipped and cracked fingernail polish and replace it without disturbing the fingernail polish on the rest of the fingers. However, the solvents which are used to remove fingernail polish are so active, and the presently used apparatus for removing the fingernail polish is so inefficient, that frequently the user damages or removes part of the polish on the fingers which had acceptable coats of polish on them.- This is objectionable. The present invention obviates this objection by providing an apparatus which enables the user to neatly remove the fingernail polish from just those fingers which require it it and protects the polish on the rest of the fingers from contact with the polish remover. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide apparatus for removing fingernail polish from the fingers of the user which will, facilitate that removal without causing impairment or removal of the polish on other fingers of the user.

Pingernail polish and the solvents used to remove it are oftentimes very sticky and adhere intimately to the users fingers. In addition, the fingernail polish and the solvents therefore tend to stain clothing which they contact. It is therefore desirable to provide an apparatus for removing fingernail. polish which will obviate contact between the users fingers and the fingernail polish remover and also to obviate contact between the user's clothing and the fingernail polish and remover. The Present invention provides such apparatus,.and that apparatus consists of pads which can be held on a handle for application to the polish which is to be removed. The pads need not be touched by the fingers of the user either when they are secured to the handle or when they are disassocited from that handle. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a pad for cleaning fingernail polish ofi of the users fingers whichcan be assembled with or disassociated from a handle without requiring contact with the users fingers.

The manicure pads provided by the present invention have recesses in them into which the end of. the handle can extend. In addition, these pads have plane surfa es opposite to the recesses so the pads can rest on those surfaces and always present the recesses to the end of the handle. With such a construction it is simple to insert the end of the handle in the recess and thereby assemble the handle with the pad. It is therefore an object of the resent invention to provide a manicure pad with a recess therein and with a plane surface opposite to that recess and which can support the pad.

ice

The handle provided by the present invention has a tapered, projecting screw thread thereon and that screw thread can extend into and grip the walls of the recess in the pad. With such a construction it is only necessary to extend the end of the handle into the recess and rotate the handle to lock the manicure pad and the handle in assembled relation. Conversely, it is only necessary to rotate the handle in the opposite direction to free the manicure pad from the handle. This provides an exceedingly simple and straightforward method of assembling and disassociating the handle and pad. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a manicure pad with a recess therein and to provide a handle with a projecting, tapered screw threaded end that can extend into and grip the walls of the recess in the manicure pad.

The present invention provides a container for the manicure apparatus, and that container has a receptacle for used manicure pads and has a receptacle for nail polish remover. The receptacle for the nail polish remover is removably mounted within the container and can be separated from that container for cleaning and also to facilitate emptying of the receptacle for used manicure pads. The receptacle for fingernail polish remover is so dimensioned that a space is provided between the opposite ends of that receptacle and the side walls of the container; those spaces constituting passages from the exterior of the container to the receptacle for used manicure pads. These passages are dimensioned so manicure pads can be interposed within them freely but so they will resist rotation of the manicure pads. With such a construction, it is possible to insert the end of the handle within the recess of a pad and start rotating the handle relative to the pad until a loose gripping action is attained between the handle and the pad. Thereafter, the handle and pad can be lifted upwardly and then the pad interposed in one or the other of the passageways. The walls of the passageways will hold the pad immobile as the handle is rotated to increase the tightness of the gripping action between the handle and the pad. In this way, the pad is tightly secured to the handle Without ever requiring contact with the users hand. After the pad has been used to remove polish from the users fingernails, that pad can be separated from thehandle by inserting it within the other of the passageways and rotating the handle in the opposite direction. The walls of this other passageway will hold the pad immobile while the handle is threaded out of the recess in the pad, and thereafter the pad will fall downwardly into the receptacle for used manicure pads. Here again, the pad is not touched by the users hands. In this way the pad can be tightened onto or can be threaded oft of the handle without ever requiring contact with the users hands; thus the users hands are protected against soiling or staining by the fingernail polish or the remover therefor. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a container for manicure apparatus which has two passageways dimensioned to receive manicure pads but to hold these pads against rotation.

Other and further objects and advantages of the present invention should become apparent from an examination of the drawing and accompanying description.

-In the drawing and accompanying description a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown and described but it is to be understood that the drawing and accompanying description are for the purpose of illustration only and do not limit the invention and that the invention will be defined by the appended claims.

In the drawing'F-ig. l is a perspective view of a container for manicure apparatus and the cover for said container; such cover being in juxtaposition to while being spaced from that container,

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a manicure pad and a handle assembled therewith,

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view of the handle shown in Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the container of Fig. l, and it shows that container filled with manicure pads,

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional side view of the container of Fig. 4, and it is taken along the plane indicated by the line 5-5 in Fig. 4,

Fig. 6 is a view of the underside of the cover for the container of Figs. 1, 4 and 5,

Fig. 7 is a side elevational view of the cover of Figs. 1 and 6, and it shows that cover in inverted position,

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the manicure pad shown in Fig. 2,

Fig. 9 is a side elevational view of the manicure pad of Figs. 2 and 8, and

Fig. 10 is a cross sectional end view of the container shown in Fig. 4, and it is taken along the plane indicated by the line 1010 in Fig. 4.

Referring to the drawing in detail, the numeral generally denotes a container for manicure apparatus. This container is a rectangular parallelepiped with the top thereof open. A shoulder 22 is formed on the interior of the container 20, and that shoulder extends around the inner perimeter of that container. The container 20 will preferably be made of a sturdy but lightweight plastic, but it could of course be made of other materialssuch as wood or metal.

A tray 24 is dimensioned to fit into the container 20, extending downwardly into that container through the open top thereof. The tray 24 is dimensioned so it will rest upon and be supported by the shoulder 22 which extends around the interior of the container 20. The tray 24 will be made so there is clearance between the exterior of that tray and the interior of the container 20 to facilitate easy insertion and removal of that tray. A receptacle 26 of generally U-shaped cross section is formed in the tray 24, and walls are formed on opposite sides of that receptacle which extend to the side walls of the tray 24, thus projecting beyond the end walls of the receptacle 26. This provides two spaces at the 0pposite ends of the receptacle 26, and those spaces con- 4 between the side wall of the tray and the partition of the tray. This enables the pads 28 to be stored in compact relation within the tray 24 and to be held against shifting within that tray.

A handle 32 in the form of an elongated rod is provided, and one end of that handle has a projecting, tapered screw thread 34 thereon. The taper on the one end of the handle 32 corresponds closely to the taper of the recess 30 in the pad 28. As a result, the tapered end 34 of the handle 32 extends readily into the recess 30 in the end of the pad 28. The screw thread on the end 34 of the handle 32 readily grips the material of which the pad 28 is made, and creates a gripping action between the handle 32 and the pad 28. This gripping action will be rather loose when the handle 32 is inserted in the recess 30 of a pad 28 disposed in one of the four sections of the tray defined by the partition 25 and the side walls of that tray. However, that gripping action of the threads on the handle with the material of the pad 28 can be made very tight by disposing that pad in the space between one of the end walls of the receptacle 26 and one of the side Walls of the tray 24. The space will be such that the pad 28 cannot rotate and thus as the handle 32 is rotated the screw threads on the end thereof will bite into the material of the pad 28 with ever tightening intensity. The grip which the screw threads on the end of the handle 32 can provide with the pad 28 is such that the pad can be pressed hard against fingernails to facilitate the wiping away of the polish without any danger whatsoever of the pad becoming disassociated from the handle 32. Before the pad is applied to the fingernails of the user, the lower end of that pad will be dipped into nail polish remover which has been poured into the receptacle 26. As the fingernail polish remover loosens the fingernail polish, the pad will wipe that polish away and absorb it. When the manicure pad is dirty or is filled with the removed nail polish, it can be removed from the handle 32 by l disposing it within the space between the other end of stitute passages from the exterior of the container 20 to the bottom of that container, which bottom constitutes a recepacle for used manicure pads. The spaced walls which define the two passages are spaced apart sufiiciently to permit a manicure pad to be positioned between them, but are spaced close enough to resist rotation of any such pads. Moreover, the spacing between the ends of the receptacle 26 and the side walls of the tray 24 is large enough to permit pads to fall downwardly through the passages into the receptacle for used manicure pads whenever those pads are free from their handles. The receptacle 26 is wider than the width of a manicure pad, and this enables the pad to be placed within the receptacle with its axis parallel to the axis of the receptacle. This is desirable since it facilitates wetting of the bottom of the pad in a uniform manner, and further enables the user to select the amount of wetting that she desires. Partitions 25 extend from the ends of the tray 24 to the walls which define the sides of the receptacle 26, and those partitions are disposed in the center of the tray 24.

Pads 28 are provided; such pads preferably being of a sturdy absorbent material such as felt or similar material. One particular material that has been found quite acceptacle is semi-hard absorbent white felt. These pads have receding, conical recesses 30 therein, and each of these pads has a plane, pad-supporting surface thereon opposite to the recess 30. That plane pad-supporting surface enables the pad to rest on one of its edges and to present its recess 30 to the end of the handle. The pads are dimensioned so their width corresponds closely to the width of that portion of tray 24 which extends the receptacle 26 and the adjacent wall of the tray 24, and rotating the handle 32 in the opposite direction to which it was rotated in securing the pad to it. As the handle continues to rotate, the pad 28 will be held immobile by the ends of the receptacle 26 and the adjacent side of the tray 24, and eventually the pad will fall away from the handle 32 and drop into the bottom of the container 20. In the entire process of removing the pad 28 from its position in one of the four sections of the tray 24 defined by the partition 25 and the side walls of the tray 24, the wetting of that pad with nail polish remover, the application of that pad to the nails of the user, and the separation of that pad from the handle so it could be stored within the receptacle for used manicure pads, the pad never required the contact of the users hands. Accordingly, it is possible to use this manicure apparatus and keep the hands completely free of soiling or staining from the nail polish or the remover therefor.

The fresh pads could be tightened onto the handle 32 by positioning them in either of the passageways at the opposite ends of the receptacle 26. However, it will usually be found preferable to select one of those passageways to tighten the pads 28 onto the handle 32 and to use the other of those passages for removing the pads 28 from the handle 32. Such a plan will keep the fresh pads clean and fresh until after they have been dipped in the fingernail polish remover and have been applied to the nails of the user.

A cover 36 is provided for the container 20; that cover having a downwardly depending flange which can telescope down over the upper end of the container 20. Downwardly depending projections 38 are provided on the underside of the cover 36, and those projections are made resilient. These projections are spaced apart a distance sufiicient to enable them to receive the handle 32 and grip that handle tightly. As the result, a handle 32 can be stored within the cover 36'and removed from that cover at will, it only requiring a light pull on'the handle 32 to free it from the projection 38. This provides a self-contained manicure set which makes possible the removal of fingernail polish without any contact between the users fingers and dirty and stained pads.

Whereas the drawing and accompanying description have shown and described a preferred embodiment of the present invention it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the form of the invention without affectingthe scope thereof.

What I claim is:

1. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a housing, a receptacle in said housing for used manicure pads, a receptacle in said housing for fingernail polish remover, said receptacle for used manicure pads underlying said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, a passageway in said housing to said receptacle for used manicure pads, said passageway having a wall of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover as one wall thereof and having a second wall spaced from said one wall to provide a space in which a manicure pad can be held against turning, a pad with a recess therein and with a plane pad-supporting surface opposite to said recess, said pad being selectively disposable in said space in said passageway, and a handle with an end portion that can selectively extend within said recess in said pad and rotate relative to said pad to selectively grip and hold said pad, whereby a manicure pad can be gripped and held by said handle by extending said end portion of said handle into said recess in said pad and providing an initial gripping and holding by rotating said handle relative to said pad and providing a firm gripping and holding of said pad by moving said pad to said space in said passageway and further rotating said handle, can be dipped into fingernail polish remover in said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, can be applied to the polish on. fingernails, and can be disassociated from said handle by P0- sitioning it within said space in said passageway while rotating said handle in the opposite direction, and can be moved into said receptacle for used manicure pads without being contacted by the hands.

2. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a housing, a receptacle in said housing for used manicure pads, a receptacle in said housing for fingernail polish remover, said receptacle for used manicure pads underlying said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, a passageway in said housing having a wall of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover as one wall thereof and'having a second wall spaced from said one wall to provide a space in which a manicure pad can be held against turning, a manicure pad, said pad being selectively disposable in said space in said passageway, a handle, and a screw thread on said handle that can selectively grip and hold said pad, whereby a manicure pad can be gripped and held by the screw thread on said handle, can be dipped into fingernail polish remover in said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, can be applied to polish on fingernails, can be disassociated from said handle, and can be moved into said receptacle for used manicure pads without being contacted by the hands.

3. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a container, a receptacle in said container for used manicuring pads, spaced apart surfaces in said container at the entrance to said receptacle, said surfaces being spaced apart to permit the interpositioning of a manicure pad therebetween but to resist turning of said manicure pad, and a second set of spaced apart surfaces in said container that can permit the interpositioning of another manicure pad therebetween but can resist turning of said other manicure pad, and a receptacle in said container for fingernail polish remover, said receptacle for used manicure pads underlying said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, the first said spaced apart sur- 6 faces being disposed at one side of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover and said second set of spaced apart surfaces being disposed at the opposite side of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, a manicure pad, said pad being selectively disposable between the first said and said second spaced apart surfaces, a handle, and interacting surfaces on said pad and said handle to provide selective gripping and holding of said pad by said handle, said container being dimensioned to receive and hold fresh manicure pads and said handle.

4. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a housing, a receptacle in said housing for used manicure pads, and spaced apart surfaces in said housing at the entrance to said receptacle, said surfaces being spaced apart to permit the interpositioning of a manicure pad therebetween but to resist turning of said manicure pad, a pad, said pad being selectively disposable between said spaced apart surfaces, a handle for said pad, and inter-acting surfaces on said handle and pad that respond to relative rotation between said handle and said pad to selectively secure said handle to or free, said handle from said pad, said interacting surfaces constituting a projecting, tapered screw thread on said handle and areceding tapered recess in said manicure pad.

5. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a housing, a receptacle in said housing for used manicure pads, a receptacle in said housing for fingernail polish remover, a pad, a handle, interacting surfaces on said pad and handle that respond to selective rotation to selectively grip and disassociate each other, and a passageway in said housing to said receptacle for used manicure pads, said passageway having a wall of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover as one wall thereof and having a second wall spaced from said one wall to i provide. a space in which a manicure pad can be held against turning, whereby a manicure pad can be assembled with said handle, can be inserted in fingernail polish remover in said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, can be applied to fingernails, can be disassociated from said handle, and can be moved into said receptacle for used manicure pads without being contacted by the hands.

6. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a receptacle for used manicure pads, spaced apart surfaces at the entrance to said receptacle, a handle, a plurality of manicure pads, and interacting surfaces on said pads and said handle that can respond to relative rotation of said handle and said pads to selectively grip or free said pads, said surfaces being spaced apart to permit the interpositioning of a manicure pad therebetween but to resist turning of said manicure pad, said spaced apart surfaces being spaced above the bottom of said receptacle whereby pads can fall by gravity from between said spaced walls to the bottom of said receptacle, whereby used manicure pads can be disassociated from said handle without contacting the hands by positioning said pads between said surfaces and rotating said handle.

7. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a receptacle for used manicure pads, a receptacle for fingernail polish remover, said receptacle for used manicure pads underlying said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, and a passageway to said receptacle for used manicure pads, said passageway having a wall of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover as one wall thereof and having a second wall spaced from said one wall to provide a space in which a manicure pad can be held without turning, said pad being rotatable relative to a handle to free said pad from said handle, whereby used manicure pads can be disassociated from said handle without contacting the hands by positioning said pads within said space in said passageway and rotating said handle.

8. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a receptacle for used manicure pads, spaced apart surfaces at the entrance to said receptacle, said surfaces being spaced apart to permit the interpositioning of a manicure pad therebetween but to resist turning of said manicure pad, a second set of spaced apart surfaces that permit the interpositioning of another manicure pad therebetween but resist turning of said other manicure pad, a handle, a plurality of manicure pads, and interacting surfaces on said pads and said handle that can respond to relative rotation of said handle and said pads to selectively grip or free said pads, whereby used manicure pads can be disassociated from said handle without contacting the hands by positioning said pads between said second set of spaced apart surfaces and rotating said handle.

9. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a receptacle for used manicure pads, spaced apart surfaces at the entrance to said receptacle, said surfaces being spaced apart to permit the interpositioning of a manicure pad therebetween but to resist turning of said manicure pad, and a second set of spaced apart surfaces that permit the interpositioning of another manicure pad therebetween but resist turning of said other manicure pad, and a receptacle for fingernail polish remover, said receptacle for used manicure pads underlying said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, the first said spaced apart surfaces being disposed at one side of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover and said second set of spaced apart surfaces being disposed at the opposite side of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover.

10. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a receptacle for used manicuring pads, spaced apart surfaces at the entrance to said receptacle, said surfaces being spaced apart to permit the interpositioning of a manicure pad therebetween but to resist turning of said manicure pad, and a second set of spaced apart surfaces that permit the interpositioning of another manicure pad therebetween but resist turning of said other manicure pad, a receptacle for fingernail polish remover, said receptacle for used manicure pads underlying said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, said spaced apart surfaces being disposed at one side of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover and said second set of spaced apart surfaces being disposed at the opposite side of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover, a container, said receptacle for used manicure pads and said receptacle for fingernail polish remover and said first and second set of spaced surfaces being within said container, said container having a recess therein for fresh manicure pads.

11. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a housing, a receptacle in said housing for used manicure pads, spaced apart surfaces in said housing at the entrance to said receptacle, said surfaces being spaced apart to permit the interpositioning of a manicure pad therebetween but to resist turning of said manicure pad, a pad, said pad being selectively disposable between said spaced apart surfaces, a handle for said pad, and interacting surfaces on said handle and pad that respond to relative rotation between said handle and said pad to selectively secure said pad to said handle or free said pad from said handle.

12. Apparatus to facilitate the manicuring of fingernails that comprises a receptacle for used manicure pads, a receptacle for fingernail polish remover, and a passageway to said receptacle for used manicure pads, said passageway having a wall of said receptacle for fingernail polish remover as one wall thereof and having a second wall spaced from said one wall to provide a space in which a manicure pad can be held against turning, said pad being rotatable relative to a handle to free said pad from said handle, whereby used manicuring pads can be disassocated from said handle without contacting the hands by positioning said pads within said space in said passageway and rotating said handle.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 188,227 Bacon Mar. 13, 1877 1,256,831 Rogers Feb. 19, 1918 1,523,877 Kjetsaa Apr. 5, 1927 1,641,650 Walker Sept. 6, 1927 1,985,358 Douglas Dec. 25, 1934 2,043,678 Schmalz June 9, 1936 2,491,274 McNeill Dec. 13, 1949 2,542,397 Core Feb. 20, 1951 2,563,455 Brown Aug. 7, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 371,850 Italy June 6, 1939 

